TheRealStoryofAhQ.docx

The Real Story of Ah Q这个版本的《阿Q正传》是美国学者W. Michael O’Shea在绍兴一所外国语学院任教期间，在本人及众多热心人士的帮助下，历时2年，反复修改后完成的大作。W. Michael O’Shea的治学精神我非常的敬佩，他到绍兴来任教，主要目的就是为了完成他的作品。对于文章里面我觉得非常微不足道的细节，他都会化上很长时间——几天甚至数月探个究竟。在他的不懈最求完美的过程中，绍兴鲁迅博物馆馆长成了他的挚友，并且他连绍兴话都说的非常的地道了。杨宪益的《阿Q正传》英文译本，被国内奉为经典。而W. Michael O’Shea的看法杨的版本过于“经典”，言语晦涩拗口，out of date了，该版本在西方很不受欢迎。所以 W. Michael O’Shea决定用更现代通俗简明流畅的语言把这部国内经典奉献给西方读者，促进中西方文化交流，共享人类精神财富。而我本人则认为他这个版本也是国人学习英语学习翻译的绝佳材料。所以在这里奉献出来给大家，希望大家能好好珍惜，品味揣摩。Preface(1)《阿Ｑ正传》序This is something I should be very grateful for, and about which I also feel very glad and appreciative. That is to say, because of the translation of that master of Chinese literature, Mr. Wang XiLi(2) (B.A.Vassiliev), a little work of mine will, to my surprise, be able to unfold right before the eyes of Russian readers.这在我是很应该感谢，也是很觉得欣幸的事，就是：我的一篇短小的作品，仗着深通中国文学的王希礼（B.A. Vassi-liev）〔２〕先生的翻译，竟得展开在俄国读者的面前了。Although I’ve already tried, in the end I still can’t be too confident about whether or not I’m really able to describe the essence of a contemporary man from our country. I’m unable to understand other people. I have always seemed to feel that there is a tall wall which separates us from each other (T1) and which makes all of us unable to know how to be compatible with each other. This is precisely what wise men from ancient times – namely the so-called sages and men of virtue who divided all men into ten categories (3) – said about those who are superior having nothing in common with those who are inferior. Although the names they gave to these categories are not used now, nevertheless they still exist in spirit. Moreover, this has intensified so that there is now even a social hierarchy for a person’s body, which makes it unavoidable not to think that the feet are a different and inferior species than the hands.我虽然已经试做，但终于自己还不能很有把握，我是否真能够写出一个现代的我们国人的魂灵来。别人我不得而知，在我自己，总仿佛觉得我们人人之间各有一道高墙，将各个分离，使大家的心无从相印。这就是我们古代的聪明人，即所谓圣贤，将人们分为十等〔３〕，说是高下各不相同。其名目现在虽然不用了，但那鬼魂却依然存在，并且，变本加厉，连一个人的身体也有了等差，使手对于足也不免视为下等的异类。造化生人，已